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This boy will never be the same.

A Ship Without A Shepherd

There was a great commotion at sea; everyone was feeling restless. Their Captain had just made an announcement that none of them had expected to hear. Well, some of them were already beginning to feel anxious. It probably had something to do with an earlier announcement that they were going to have ‘one last party‘. I don’t know about you, but there is always something ominous whenever you prefix any gesture or event with the words ‘one last‘. One last meal. One last conversation. One last group hug. One last party. One member of the crew wondered if he had just misheard the news about the party. But then came the Captain’s speech, and somehow everything seemed… connected.

There was quite a number of new faces on deck, but to those that had been part of the crew some years back, their faces were a mix of surprise, shock, and disbelief. Some of them were even fighting back tears as they listened to their Captain, as he tried his best to talk without his voice faltering. He almost did once, but their Captain had managed to finish telling them his somber message. At that moment, you could see a myriad of reactions. Eyes that slanted upward in confusion, as if to ask Why? Heads bowed down, shaking slowly, as if they could not accept what was going to happen. People turning to their friends, trying to catch their glance; secret conversations already in play. Each member of the crew had their own encounter with the Captain. Each one of them had their own story to tell. If an outsider asked them how they would describe the Captain, they would easily say the first word that comes to their mind: Awesome; with The Coolest probably coming at a close second. Their Captain was an inspiration to them; their strength and their shield. For some of them, his absence will be as if they were on a toy boat lost in a turbulent ocean.

Between rough seas and dark skies, one can only wonder what happens next.